Tadhg Brammer is an Essay Coach for ESM Prep College Matchpoint based in the Pacific Northwest. A first-generation college student, they graduated from Amherst College summa cum laude with a bachelor of arts in English and Studio Art. While in college, they completed a thesis project for both of their majors. Their English thesis—a novel about adolescence and the transformational power of friendship—won the Ralph Waldo Rice Prize for the best thesis of their year. Since graduating, Tadhg has explored their love of reading, writing, and narrative as an essay coach, an ACT, SAT, and AP tutor, an oral historian, a volunteer at a queer library and archive, and a bookseller at Elliott Bay Book Company.

Tadhg is committed to the creation of a curious, supportive environment for their students. They approach the writing process by asking lots of questions, and value even the smallest details of a student’s experience. As a mentor, Tadhg has guided high schoolers through the rigorous process of honing their writing craft to prepare for exams. Their background in creative writing and studio art has taught them to embrace the unexpected, and generate inspiration through a combination of discipline, play, and creative practice. Because they grew up in a rural area without much institutional support, they are passionate about demystifying the college application process. Their principal approaches to mentorship are patience and approachability.

Tadhg has been to forty-two of the US states, and hopes to knock out the remaining eight in the next few years. In their free time, they like to read, draw, play guitar, and go for long walks in the woods. Tadhg remains an avid fiction writer and zine-maker, and a dedicated parent to their beloved and vexing orange cat, Chicken. They wrote their Common Application Essay about Master Haku from Hayao Miyazaki’s Spirited Away.